# Most and least people in loud road or rail noise: places in East of England (2021)

Watford had the highest share of people in loud road or rail noise of East of England’s 45 councils in 2021, at 6.1%.

Maldon had the lowest, at 0.0%. The middle council, Uttlesford, had 1.9%.

Worked out by Open Index from Defra's strategic noise maps and census output areas.

| Rank | Area | People in loud road or rail noise |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | [Watford](https://openindex.co.uk/watford) | 6.1% |
| 2 | [Hertsmere](https://openindex.co.uk/hertsmere) | 4.8% |
| 3 | [Broxbourne](https://openindex.co.uk/broxbourne) | 4.3% |
| =4 | [Brentwood](https://openindex.co.uk/brentwood) | 3.9% |
| =4 | [Peterborough](https://openindex.co.uk/peterborough) | 3.9% |
| =4 | [Southend-on-Sea](https://openindex.co.uk/southend-on-sea) | 3.9% |
| 7 | [Ipswich](https://openindex.co.uk/ipswich) | 3.7% |
| 8 | [Three Rivers](https://openindex.co.uk/three-rivers) | 3.2% |
| 9 | [Cambridge](https://openindex.co.uk/cambridge) | 3.1% |
| =10 | [Bedford](https://openindex.co.uk/bedford) | 3.0% |
| =10 | [Dacorum](https://openindex.co.uk/dacorum) | 3.0% |
| =10 | [Welwyn Hatfield](https://openindex.co.uk/welwyn-hatfield) | 3.0% |
| 13 | [Stevenage](https://openindex.co.uk/stevenage) | 2.9% |
| =14 | [Epping Forest](https://openindex.co.uk/epping-forest) | 2.7% |
| =14 | [St Albans](https://openindex.co.uk/st-albans) | 2.7% |
| 16 | [Norwich](https://openindex.co.uk/norwich) | 2.5% |
| 17 | [Mid Suffolk](https://openindex.co.uk/mid-suffolk) | 2.4% |
| 18 | [Thurrock](https://openindex.co.uk/thurrock) | 2.2% |
| =19 | [Luton](https://openindex.co.uk/luton) | 2.1% |
| =19 | [Tendring](https://openindex.co.uk/tendring) | 2.1% |
| 21 | [East Cambridgeshire](https://openindex.co.uk/east-cambridgeshire) | 2.0% |
| =22 | [East Hertfordshire](https://openindex.co.uk/east-hertfordshire) | 1.9% |
| =22 | [Uttlesford](https://openindex.co.uk/uttlesford) | 1.9% |
| 24 | [Colchester](https://openindex.co.uk/colchester) | 1.8% |
| =25 | [Babergh](https://openindex.co.uk/babergh) | 1.7% |
| =25 | [Chelmsford](https://openindex.co.uk/chelmsford) | 1.7% |
| =25 | [East Suffolk](https://openindex.co.uk/east-suffolk) | 1.7% |
| =25 | [King's Lynn and West Norfolk](https://openindex.co.uk/kings-lynn-and-west-norfolk) | 1.7% |
| =29 | [North Hertfordshire](https://openindex.co.uk/north-hertfordshire) | 1.6% |
| =29 | [South Norfolk](https://openindex.co.uk/south-norfolk) | 1.6% |
| 31 | [Huntingdonshire](https://openindex.co.uk/huntingdonshire) | 1.5% |
| =32 | [North Norfolk](https://openindex.co.uk/north-norfolk) | 1.2% |
| =32 | [West Suffolk](https://openindex.co.uk/west-suffolk) | 1.2% |
| =34 | [Braintree](https://openindex.co.uk/braintree) | 1.0% |
| =34 | [Great Yarmouth](https://openindex.co.uk/great-yarmouth) | 1.0% |
| 36 | [Basildon](https://openindex.co.uk/basildon) | 0.9% |
| =37 | [Central Bedfordshire](https://openindex.co.uk/central-bedfordshire) | 0.8% |
| =37 | [South Cambridgeshire](https://openindex.co.uk/south-cambridgeshire) | 0.8% |
| 39 | [Harlow](https://openindex.co.uk/harlow) | 0.7% |
| =40 | [Breckland](https://openindex.co.uk/breckland) | 0.6% |
| =40 | [Castle Point](https://openindex.co.uk/castle-point) | 0.6% |
| 42 | [Fenland](https://openindex.co.uk/fenland) | 0.5% |
| =43 | [Broadland](https://openindex.co.uk/broadland) | 0.4% |
| =43 | [Rochford](https://openindex.co.uk/rochford) | 0.4% |
| 45 | [Maldon](https://openindex.co.uk/maldon) | 0.0% |

Source: Worked out by Open Index from Defra's strategic noise maps and census output areas. Covers England. Period: 2021. Period: 2021.

## Other rankings of this measure

- [England](https://openindex.co.uk/rankings/loud-transport-noise/england)
- [North East](https://openindex.co.uk/rankings/loud-transport-noise/north-east)
- [North West](https://openindex.co.uk/rankings/loud-transport-noise/north-west)
- [Yorkshire and The Humber](https://openindex.co.uk/rankings/loud-transport-noise/yorkshire-and-the-humber)
- [East Midlands](https://openindex.co.uk/rankings/loud-transport-noise/east-midlands)
- [West Midlands](https://openindex.co.uk/rankings/loud-transport-noise/west-midlands)
- [London](https://openindex.co.uk/rankings/loud-transport-noise/london)
- [South East](https://openindex.co.uk/rankings/loud-transport-noise/south-east)
- [South West](https://openindex.co.uk/rankings/loud-transport-noise/south-west)

- [The map](https://openindex.co.uk/map/loud-transport-noise)
- [Source and method](https://openindex.co.uk/sources/loud-transport-noise)
- [The two measures side by side](https://openindex.co.uk/map/noise-by-postcode#vs=population&mode=blend)

## How to cite

Source: Open Index, openindex.co.uk. Link to this page, https://openindex.co.uk/rankings/loud-transport-noise/east-of-england.

Open Index's own text and the figures it works out are licensed under CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Source data keeps its publishers' licences, named with each figure. Give each figure's period and source with it.

Snapshot 2026.10.11. The HTML page: https://openindex.co.uk/rankings/loud-transport-noise/east-of-england